


Not much longer

by PerriewinkleNerdie



Category: Open Heart (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-05
Updated: 2019-10-05
Packaged: 2020-11-24 18:16:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20911997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PerriewinkleNerdie/pseuds/PerriewinkleNerdie
Summary: Late night and two sleepy doctors





	Not much longer

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, hello, hello!  
I asked my people on Tumblr if they had any requests from the list I posted there and I got a bunch of asks! So, for the next few days (*cough* hopefully *cough*) I'll be writing them :D  
The first one is from @aloehasrose on tumblr <3  
She asked for 'accidentally falling asleep together" with our grumpy attending. And it made my brain work :D  
Enjoy! <3

Some people hated late nights. After a full day of work, the last thing you’d want is to work even more with piles upon piles of paperwork. Ethan didn’t mind it, what was more, he preferred it that way. It was one of the only moments in his day that he was alone while working, it was quiet and he could finally focus. Of course, that was the way he was used to. It didn’t mean that it always happened that way. Like it didn’t that evening.

He may have been the cause of his distress, but he would never admit to that. It wasn’t like he expected it to be so hard to remain calm. It wasn’t like he could foresee himself being unable to focus on anything when she was sitting so close to him. She seemed absolutely oblivious to the fact that she was distracting him with the way she was biting her lip when thinking or the way she moved her hair to the side, exposing her neck.

He shook his head slightly, breaking from the trail of dangerous thoughts that invaded his brain. He couldn’t think like this about her. He couldn’t think about her at all. The mere mention of her was so potent to him, it made him feel uneasy with how easily she made him turn into a fool. She smiled and he could almost feel all the coherent thoughts leave his brain. It wasn’t fair. He spent thirty six years of his life without having anything more than a slight infatuation, and just as he was sure he was over it, she waltzed into his life, standing in his way like a wall that he was bound to slam into, with no way to stop or avoid it.

“Ethan?” her soft voice broke through the silence, a warm sensation making the skin of his arm tingle. He looked at Claire with an unreadable face, trying his best to cover up the feeling of heat he experienced every time she touched him. Her eyes flashed with something that could be a sign she knew, but no words were spoken as she waited for his reaction.

“Sorry, I was caught up in a case.” He cleared his throat, shifting on the couch to sit straighter. His hand brushed against her thigh, both of them freezing up at the contact. For a pair of people that saw each other at their most vulnerable and most exposed, that have been together as close as they could, they were extremally uncomfortable around each other. Of course, the one and only reason for that being the case was the distance they put between them, a desperate attempt to maintain a professional relationship. To other people, they were just two colleagues, friends even with how much time they were spending together. But they both knew better, with how their hearts stopped for a split second when the other was in the room. With how a soft smile pulled on their lips as they spoke the exact same thing at the exact same time. Everything pointed to one conclusion.

They were meant to end up together.

He tried to deny it, but he was realizing that it was a lost battle. As time went on, he slowly got around to the idea of having her with him every day more and more. With each moment of being close and having to pull away, he felt his resolve breaking. Not sure how long it would last, he hoped it would stay that way until she was out of the residency, so there was no doubt about what an exceptional doctor she was.

“Earth to Ethan?” she shook his arm softly, leaning towards him to look him in the eye. She was much closer than he remembered her to be, and he felt his breath catching in his throat. When she was sure she had his full attention, she leaned back with a lazy smirk, turning to the paperwork.

“I- um- sorry. Can you repeat?”

“Don’t worry about it.” she took the file in her hands and leaned back against the back of the couch, him following suit. Their arms were pressed together as they focused on the case. “This tumor seems to be in a difficult position. We can’t do a typical biopsy because of the blood vessels that surround it, we could have a severe case of bleeding to the brain. I was thinking we could go through the nose to avoid that.” She pointed to the spot on the scan while holding it up against the light, leaning her head onto his shoulder to get a better view. Her scent reached his nose, relaxing him almost instantly.

“If we do that, we’ll know more about the tumor and what to do with it. Good job, Rookie.” He murmured, smiling as he brushed his fingers against her hand. They spent the next thirty minutes discussing all the possible treatments for all the possible outcomes of the biopsy. His eyes were drooping, his eyelids fluttering closed for just a moment…

\----- ----- -----

The first thing he could feel the next morning was the stiffness in his neck from sleeping on the couch. He was warm, figuring that he must have covered himself with a blanket and just didn’t remember doing so. But then the familiar scent reached his senses and he knew that it wasn’t the blanket that kept him warm. It wasn’t the blanket that he was holding in his arms. A blanket didn’t smell that way. A blanket didn’t embrace him so tightly, didn’t bury its face into his chest.

It was Claire.

Somehow, in the middle of the night, they must have shifted from their sitting position into the horizontal one. And somehow, in the middle of the night, he must have wrapped his arms around her. And she must have fallen on top of him, her fingers gripping his shirt tightly.

He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t plan this, and he was sure she didn’t either. They worked too hard, too long, and their bodies just gave up. And they knew what they wanted too, they wouldn’t have ended up in a position they were in if they didn’t.

Ethan felt Claire stirring into the consciousness slowly, the reality slipping into her mind slowly. The moment she realized what was happening, she tensed, almost like she was afraid to react.

“I can feel you being awake, Claire. You won’t fool me.” He spoke quietly, his voice laced with sleep, low and warm. She nodded slightly, falling deeper into his arms. It surprised him, but his body reacted before he could decide, hugging her tighter.

“There are very few things that escape your attention. I know that.” She mused, turning her head up to make their eyes meet. He was already looking at her, smiling gently. A sparkle in her eye was endearing, prompting him to raise his hands and stroke her cheek delicately.

“It seems as though we both know subconsciously what we want.”

“Is it bad that I don’t feel guilty? Not even one bit.” Her teeth sunk into her lower lip, her chin resting on his chest. The tips of his fingers skimmed over her hair softly, brushing them away from her face.

“No. Cause I don’t feel guilty either. Not sure how much longer I can last though. Staying away from you, I mean.”

“Not much longer now. Only a few months, and then you will be able to drag me away and lock me up in your apartment for days… well, hours, since we will be working.” Claire’s eyes flashed playfully as she thought about their future together. Feeling his grip on her tightening slightly, she raised her hand to meet his, lacing their fingers together.

“Yes. Not much longer.”


End file.
